Well I finally got my U-Can-Do 3D in the air for all of 15 seconds. Almost as soon as I started my left bank out of the takeoff role she stalled on me. Lucky for me this plane will float forever, managed to get her back to the runway center line but quite a way past the end of the runway. Still a soft landing in very high grass and mud.

My Saito FA-100 was running perfectly on my bench. In the plane I started having problems -- my guess is the fuel tank position is just not suited. My biggest question is why? Everything I've read say this engine/plane combo is ideal. I have stood there after filling the fuel tank and watched the carburetor fill up with fuel with no priming action. This flooding continues even when I try to start the engine -- it just won't work.

Now I know there are others out there with this combo that have not gone to a regulator. I have a Cline Regulator available but would rather keep it for my Moki 180. The fuel tank position is obviously the problem, but how do I rectify that without major surgery on the former it sits in?

you have 3 choices...

1... lower the tank substantially (what ever cutting it takes)
2....go to a pumping system, either cline or perry
3 .....mount the engine upright or sideways

On my initial setup with my UCD & Saito 100, I had to lean the idle mixture almost 1 1/4 turns to get it to idle without loading up. This was due to the high tank location. It ran pretty well like this for many flights.
Then I moved the tank to the CG and put a small 2 oz header tank next to the firewall. It ran ok but not as reliable depending on the fuel level remaining in the main tank. So I added a Perry pump and presto, I've got 16 oz capacity with no problems even in the wildest attitudes and tumbles.
I was running a Saito 180 like this also, with 16 oz main tank at CG and a 4 oz header at the firewall, without pump, and that 180 just ran and ran, as long as the header tank was full, no problem with any attitude!

outssider pegged it; and of his three reccomendations, mounting the engine sideways is the least painful, in terms of additional cost/effort required.

I have a YS, and it doesn't care where the fuel tank is. But I was concerned about potential cooling problems here in the sub-tropics, and I saw the two guys at my field that had this model before me struggling with attaching/removing the glow igniter on that inverted head.

The older I get, the more I"m really into hassle-free things. So I mounted my YS 91 sideways. It looks okay, and the "square" mounting holes on the UCD make placement a no-brainer; just rotate the engine mount ninety degrees.

Do yourself a favor and get either a Cline or Perry. I got a Cline and have had zero problems. Idles so low and reliable that you can almost count the rpm's. No burbles in a hover. It's great! It's 60 dollars (which seems to be a rip off), but money well spent when you get the results.

Steve ... all you have to do is put on a remote glow to solve the glow plug position problem ... that way you don't have a big honkin' cylinder sticking out the side of the cowl. The one I bought was around 7 dollars and mounts on a little angle bracket. A small hole in the cowl provides access.

JS

JS,

Yeah, I have used remote glow fittings a lot, on bigger cowled engines and my helos.

I was more concerned about the engine getting hot in the tight confines of the UCD cowl. Now that summer is here with a vengeance, we'll see how the guys with inverted mounts fare.

JS, which type did you get ? Any problems with the glow plug connector getting loose or intermittent ? Thx.......

Steve, how much weight did you add to the left wing to balance out ?Thx.....

I have been using the hanger-9 remote glow plug adapters. I don't have a part number for you, but they sure are slick. A spring loaded clip keeps the connector on the plug. On the external portion of the plug, it is a headphone jack, they give you an adapter to use with your glow ignitor. Very good stuff. I like the fact that you don't have a "glow plug" sticking out of your cowl.

I will try to find a part number.

Well that was easy, here it is:
http://horizon.hobbyshopnow.com/prod...p?prod=HAN3025

Allan, where did ya install the ground lead on the engine ?

I installed mine on a Saito 100, but I imagine this would work on any 4-stroke. I just pulled one of the bolts out of the valve cover and ran it through the ground lead, and then put it back into the valve cover. No problems.

Thanks Allan !

rajul,

Never got around to that. It definitely needed doing; I estimate at least a half ounce would be needed. But this airplane just hasn't "lit my fire" like I thought it would. Its something I cannot put my finger on; I have NO complaints with the quality of the model or the way it flies, but I put the twentieth (and last, for me) flight in almost four months on it yesterday. I found myself taking the Somethin' Extra, and now the Four Star I just finished for the grandson, to the field far more often than the UCD.

It has been sold to a fellow who lost his from radio problems last week-end.

Steve,
You didn't put the engine back into your Sport Cap? I ended up destroying my first one, and have since built another. I really love the plane. Getting ready to start on an Aresti now.

I used a Sonic Tronics. Looks like 11 bucks on their website, but I think I paid more like 7 at LHS. It could have been more ...

http://www.sonictronics.com/products...ugs/prod03.htm

It has a spring loaded clip (push in and turn) which holds it on the plug ... no problems so far. Ground wire went between the engine and mounting bolt. It has a "glow plug" looking end that sits in a angle bracket. With a hole in the cowl the diameter of a glow plug clip, the remote glow plug sits about flush with the cowl (body of it is inside the cowl).

No problem with engine heating yet. I've got a nice size hole in the front of the cowl and there seems to be plenty of opening at the back of the cowl for air flow. I don't think it'll be a problem.

I fly a 33% FiberClassics Extra and I bought the UCD to learn to hover at low altitude (didn't have the guts to bring the FC too close to the ground). I've been VERY please with the hovering of this thing. I don't think the plane is for everyone, but if you want to learn to hover it's the ticket. Good torque rolling with the Saito 100 and APC 16x4w combo. The Cline reg works great .... I get a lot of comments at the field at how smooth the engine runs.

Sorry to hear you didn't like yours, Steve.

JS

JSnipes, how's your spooling with the 16x4W? I heard good comments on the APC 15x6..........

I've been running the 16x4 Wide on my 100. The spooling isn't really that big of a deal. It does take a tiny bit longer to get up to speed. I run 30% Nitro in my 100 and it really isn't very noticable at all. I would have to agree with jsnipes, I found it easier to hover the plane with the 16x4w than a 15x6.

Will the 16x4W work with 15% nitro ?

I think the spooling issue might be more of a problem, but I haven't tried it, so I don't nkow for sure.

Allan,

Nope; sold the engine with the model. Also found a guy who wants the CAP Sport. You're right, that Sport CAP is one great model; but mine has over 100 flights and is pretty ratty, looks-wise. I know where one is NIB that the guy will never build, and will sell to me right if I get the urge for another one.

I woke up yesterday and realized I had EIGHT freakin' airplanes. The ones in not-ready-to-fly condition have spilled over into the spare room, which has been annoying the wife greatly. Time for spring cleaning....

I'll try to sell two others that are hanging up (and probably won't ever get flown again) this week-end at the fly-in. Reducing the inventory by half makes the bride happy, and gives me a war chest to get something new with... The search is on already.<G>

jsnipes,

I didn't DIS-like the model, and in fact enjoyed flying it. But it just did not keep my interest, for some reason.

rajul,

The APC 16x4W is one big chunk of prop. Yes, it will work with 15%, but your throttle response will be slow. I replaced mine with a 15x6 Saturday, and the throttle response was noticeably better. My buddy runs 20% nitro in his 91 FZ, and he noticed the difference too when he switched props.

If hovering is your main gig, then you'll probably be better off living with the limitations of the 16x4W. But for regular flying, the 15x6 gives up nothing to the boat paddle, and your engine will be happier.

Steve

Steve with the engine mounted like that?

It flew like the other four at my field; amazingly well.

While lateral balance can be important, it is one of those things that usually can be ignored without much, if any, penalty; especially in a plane that will be mostly thrown around and won't be spending much time flying in a straight line. It may resemble one, but a pattern plane this ain't!

I'm sure the purists will flay me for the above remarks. Before they get their knickers in too big of a twist, I usually do balance my planks laterally; I just never got around to it on this one.

If that "cylinder sticking out of the side" doesn't offend you, a side-mounted engine kills several birds with one rock; especially if it is a non-pressurized or non-pumped engine.

Steve

the best thing U CAN DO is toss it in the the trash.

Why would you say that???